Royal Affairs
by Capsbestgirl4
Summary: Based off of the movie The Prince and Me (Title subject to change) Princess Margaret Carter is next in line for the crown, but she decides that first she needs to get away from the palace. She decides to attend New York University to get a new experience. What she didn't expect was to meet Steve Rogers and fall in love. Or AU Where Peggy is a princess and Steve is an art major.
1. Chapter 1

"Margaret Elizabeth Carter, what in the world do you think you're doing?!" Her mother asked as she stepped into the palace gym. The Queen looked menacing in a tailored suit with her arms crossed.

Peggy punched a punching bag then did a turn kick as her personal butler held it firmly. The kick caused Jarvis, the butler, to stumble backwards.

"I'm obviously baking a cake Mother." Peggy said as she grabbed her water bottle and walked towards her mother. She took a long sip of water.

Her mother gave her a look, "Well, it's not very becoming of a queen."

"Then it's a good thing I'm not the queen yet. You are." Peggy remarked as she breezed past her mother.

As Peggy left, Jarvis made his way over to the queen. He promptly bowed and said, "Your highness, I am terribly sorry for going against your wishes. I had no idea you were against the training sessions."

"It's fine Jarvis. It's just that I'm worried about her. There's a lot of pressure on her at the moment and I feel like I'm just laying on more when all I want is for her to be happy." She confessed.

"As do I, your highness."

"Jarvis, you know you can call me Amanda, correct? We have known each other for ten years now."

"You're the queen, it would be quite odd for me to call you Amanda."

"Jarvis."

"All right, Amanda. I must go and check on Ms. Carter." He said and hurried after Peggy, who was already on her way back to her suite.

"Ms. Carter!"

Peggy stopped walking and looked at him, "Yes Jarvis?"

"Please tell me you haven't filled out the application for a transfer?" He asked, out of breath.

"I may have already sent it. Express mail." Peggy replied sheepishly.

"Are you out of your mind Ms. Carter?!"

A few weeks ago Peggy decided that she wanted to transfer to a different college. A college in the United States, so that she could get away from the stresses of being royal. She had quickly filled out the application to transfer to New York University. She procured recommendation letters from her university instructors and included the fact that she was Princess Margaret Elizabeth Carter daughter of Amanda Gloria Mary Carter and Harrison Edwards Carter. It would take a month or two for her to know if her transfer was accepted, but she had still filled it out and sent it without telling either of her parents or even her brother.

"Maybe a little, but Jarvis I have to do this. And nobody can stop me, especially not my mother."

"Ms. Carter, you are going to have to tell her eventually. Especially when you get accepted to transfer."

"You mean if I get accepted."

"Don't be ridiculous Peggy, you are quite intelligent and brilliant. New York would be bloody stupid to not accept you."

"Thank you Jarvis, you have no idea how much that means to me."

"You do have to tell the King and Queen. You should also speak to Michael." Jarvis mentioned.

"I'm not talking to Michael. But I will speak to mother and father tonight during dinner. As a matter of fact I will go tell mother that I need to speak to her and father tonight." Peggy headed back to the gym, where her mother had last been.

Peggy didn't think her mother would still be there, but for some reason she was. Peggy stood in the threshold for a few seconds as she watched her mother. The Queen still had her arms crossed, but her cold exterior was temporarily down. She had wandered over to the punching bag, running her fingers over it as she glanced around the room. She eventually turned to the door and noticed Peggy. Her cold exterior was back as she walked over to her only daughter.

"What is it Peggy?"

"Nothing really, I just wanted to ask if I could speak to you and father about something important during dinner tonight?"

Her mother nodded, "Alright Peggy. Your father and I will see you during dinner."

"Thank you." Peggy said, giving her mother a small smile.

She nodded and walked out of the room. The sound of her heels echoed in the room as she left. Peggy pulled the hair tie out of her hair and let it fall down to her shoulders. She ran a hand through her hair then left the gym as well. Jarvis was waiting for her just outside the door.

"I will tell them all about it during dinner. Be ready for the fit that they're going to throw."

"And are you going to tell your brother?"

"We're not talking, remember?" Peggy said, turning away from Jarvis. She did not want to think about Michael right now.

"But he's your brother Ms. C-"

Peggy whirled around, "He abdicated Jarvis! He's the reason why I'm going to have to become queen!"

"He did? I had no idea."

"Of course not, mother and father don't want anyone to know about it just yet because they want to build up my image," Peggy turned away from Jarvis again, "I don't really want to talk about this right now. I have to sit in on some meeting with parliament." Peggy walked away before Jarvis could add anything else.

Peggy and Michael used to have a wonderful relationship and they always got along. They were always there for each other and Peggy felt utterly betrayed when her brother chose not to become the Crown Prince. Now it was down to her to become the next queen of England.

Later that evening, Peggy and her parents sat down for dinner and Peggy was beginning to get nervous.

A servant walked in with the first course and her mother signaled for her to stop walking, "We're still waiting on Michael. He will be joining us tonight."

The servant nodded and returned to the kitchen.

"That's a first." Peggy mumbled under her breath.

"What was that darling?" Her father inquired.

"Oh nothing, it's just that Michael usually doesn't have time to join us for dinner. He's always so busy."

Michael walked in and took the seat across from Peggy, "Well, I always make time for family Peg."

"That's rich coming from you."

"Peggy, don't be childish." Her mother interjected.

"Wasn't there something you wanted to tell us Peggy?" Her father questioned, attempting to change the subject. After he said that, servants started walking in, placing salads in front of each of them, but everyone's attention was currently on Peggy.

"Yes, there was. I applied for a transfer to New York University." She said, deciding to just rip the bandage off.

"You did what?!" Her mother shouted, standing up.

"Mother, I'm sure Peggy has a very good reason for doing-" Michael started to say.

"I don't need your help Michael, I'm quite capable of-" Peggy began.

"I know that Peggy, but I'm your brother I'm going to try to protect you even if you don't want or need me to."

Peggy stood up, angry, "Well it's a little too late for that! Also this isn't about you so can you please stop inserting your opinion where it's not needed."

"Why are you still angry about MY decision?" Michael asked, also starting to become angry.

"I thought you knew me so well Michael, but you _still_ don't know why I'm angry with you!" Peggy shot back.

"How am I supposed to know that?! You don't tell me anything!"

"Stop! What is the matter with the both of you?" Their father asked, looking at the both them. He was disappointed in how they were acting.

Peggy looked down at the table. This was not at all what was supposed to happen. She hadn't talked to Michael in over two weeks and this was not how she wanted her conversation with him to go. Peggy sat back down and her mother did as well.

"My apologies father, my anger got the best of me. I didn't intend for that to happen." Peggy said as she picked up a fork. She avoided looking at Michael.

"Thank you, now let's discuss this transfer application. Is this something you truly want?" Her father asked looking at her.

"Yes, it is. I have to do this. Especially before my training to become queen begins. I need time to just live, not as the crown princess but as Peggy."

"The crown princess is what you are Margaret, you don't get to choose when you're the crown princess and when you are not." Her mother said abruptly.

"That's funny because Michael go to. Why are the rules suddenly different when it comes to me?" With that she stood up, "I've lost my appetite."

Her mother and father looked at each other across the table and shared a look.

"You can go, if you get accepted." Her mother said.

"But, under a few conditions, one of which is to try and fix whatever problem you have with your brother." Her father added.

"Thank you, and I'll give it a try." Peggy replied, glancing at Michael. He shot her a small smile.

"You should eat something, we can talk afterwards." Michael said.

Peggy nodded and sat back down.

The rest of dinner went on without incident.

Once dinner was over and the dishes had all been cleared away, Peggy and Michael went to one of the many sitting rooms, each with a cup of tea. Peggy curled up on one of the couches and took a sip, almost burning her tongue in the process.

"So New York huh? It's a wonderful city, I might be heading over there in the fall as well." He said as he sat down in a recliner.

"Can we just cut to the chase?" Peggy asked, staring out the window.

"Of course. I'm sorry for making a decision you didn't like." He said sarcastically.

She looked at him, "That's not why I'm angry. It's just that you were a given a choice, I wasn't. I can't abdicate, I can't just decide to not become queen."

"I know."

"Then why?"

"I'm not fit to lead a country, you are. You always have been." Michael said, shrugging.

Peggy raised her eyebrows in surprise, "You think _I'm_ fit to be queen? Michael I swear to god I am not-"

"With time, you will be an extraordinary Queen. I know you hate me for putting you in this position, but you're the right person for the job. And you know I'll always be there for you."

"You're a real pain in the arse, you know that right?" She said, smirking.

"Yes, I do in fact."

"And Michael, I could never hate you. You're my brother and I'll always love you. Even when I do yell at you." She said as she placed her cup of tea on the coffee table.

"I know Peg, I love you too."

Peggy smiled and stood up, "Get up, we need to hug it out."

Michael laughed, but stood up and pulled his sister into a tight hug. She hugged him back just as tight.

When they pulled apart, "Can we just talk? About life? I've missed you."

"I've been here the whole time, you were just too angry to say anything." He pointed out.

"And I oh so deeply regret it." She said, laughing.


	2. Chapter 2

A few weeks had passed and somehow the media had found out that Michael had abdicated, which was a problem for the royal family. The whole country thought that the royal family was lying to its people, which technically it had. Almost every gossip magazine was talking about it or about what Peggy would be like as the queen. And most of what was said about Peggy was not good. Peggy had known that the press and the media didn't really take kindly to her, but she didn't know that it was this bad. Many of the magazines said that she would be a terrible leader and that she has no experience, but how would she have any experience if she was only twenty-one years old? It's not like she's going to become queen this young anyway.

She had to push those thoughts away for the night. Today was her father's birthday and every year there was a huge celebration for him. She was currently getting her hair done by some of her personal maids. They straightened out her hair and pulled the brown strands into a simple updo. Her tiara was placed on top of the updo because as the crown princess she was to wear her crown at any official royal gatherings. Apparently, a birthday party was considered an official royal gathering.

Once her hair was finished, all she had left was the dress. Her makeup had already been done before the ladies had begun doing her hair. She was actually excited to put the dress on; it was a beautiful number.

Ana walked into the room holding a garment bag in her arms. She hung it up on a hook and unzipped the bag. She gently pulled it out of the garment bag.

"That dress is truly beautiful Ana, you've done an incredible job."

Ana turned and looked at her with a smile, "Anything for you Ms. Carter."

Peggy smiled and stood up. Ana unzipped the back of the dress so that Peggy could easily step into it. Peggy slipped off her robe and Ana helped her put the dress on. Once it was on, Ana zipped it back up again.

Peggy stood in front of the mirror and gazed at the dress. It was a deep red that matched her lipstick. It was also strapless and had a sweetheart neckline that wasn't too revealing. The bodice was made of silk, which ended at her waist, then it flared out in layered tulle. The tulle went down to her feet.

Ana handed her a pair of white elbow-length gloves, causing Peggy to roll her eyes.

"Do I honestly have to wear those? It's bit archaic don't you think?" Peggy asked.

"Queen's orders and they are not archaic. The gloves are a symbol of elegance." Ana argued.

Peggy sighed loudly, but took the gloves and slipped them on. Ana grabbed her a pair of simple, black pumps. Peggy quickly slipped them on. The heels weren't even visible because of how long the dress was.

"Ana, how are you? We haven't talked in awhile." Peggy asked, sitting on the chair in front of the vanity.

"I'm okay actually, Edwin and I were going through a rough patch but we're okay now," Ana said with a bittersweet smile.

"I'm so sorry Ana, about everything that happened. I know it has been hard on both of you."

"Thank you, Peggy. I really appreciate it."

"Always Ana, you can come to me about anything."

There was a knock at the door and they both turned to look at the door.

"Come in!" Peggy shouted.

Michael pushed open the door and stepped into the room, "Mother wants to talk to you about questions that you are going to be asked. She's basically just going to tell you what to say."

Peggy laughed bitterly, "I shouldn't have expected anything less."

Peggy stood up and thanked Ana one last time, then walked towards her brother. He held out his arm for her and she took it. They walked out of the room together.

"Mother wants us to meet her in one of the sitting rooms. I'm pretty sure she wants to talk to just you." Michael said as they walked towards the sitting room.

"Well, _you_ are the one abdicating." Peggy pointed out.

"Right, but you're the one that will accidentally say something wrong and suffer her wrath."

"Really? It was one time and I apologized over and over again. Also, I was eight, what did you expect me to do?"

"I expected you to not tell the world that I slept with a nightlight because I was afraid of the dark."

Peggy laughed, "Clearly you expected too much."

"Obviously," Michael replied as they stepped into the sitting room.

Her mother was sitting on at a table while servants bustled around, adding finishing touches to the queen's hair. She was dressed in a royal blue gown that looked almost similar to Peggy's dress. The dress her mother was wearing wasn't strapless but had a wide scoop neck. The dress also had long sleeves that went down to her wrists, which meant that she did not have to wear the white gloves. _Lucky,_ Peggy thought to herself. There was also a huge crown on her head that was supported by her hair. One day Peggy will be the one wearing that crown on her head.

"Sit, we have a lot to cover." Her mother called out to her once she noticed that Peggy was here.

Peggy sighed and walked over to her mother. She sat down in an empty chair at the table that her mother was sitting at.

"Let's begin. If anyone asks you about your relationship status, you will say that there's no one that you're currently interested in but that you are open to a future relationship."

"Well actually I'm not open to a-" Peggy began to say.

"Doesn't matter that's what you are going to say. Now, if someone asks about what your relationship with me is like you are going to say that we have a wonderful mother-daughter relationship." Her mother continued.

"So I'm lying through my teeth the whole damn time? Marvelous. I just need to act like you." Peggy commented, rolling her eyes.

"Can you just listen?" She asked, suddenly looking exhausted.

Peggy looked up at her mom. Something didn't seem right and her mother looked upset, so instead of saying something snarky Peggy agreed to listen.

They spent about thirty minutes going over possible questions about marriage and about Michael abdicating. They also went over questions about Peggy being the next in line for the throne. All the answers were perfect and articulate, now Peggy just had to remember them.

Once they had finished, Michael and her father walked into the room. The servants had left a few minutes earlier because they were finished with everything that they had to do.

"Are you two ready?" Her father asked, holding his arms out.

Peggy and her mother stood up and Peggy said, "Of course we are father."

She walked over to him and hugged him, he hugged her back.

"Happy birthday," Peggy said as she pulled away.

Her mother walked over and fixed her husband's tie, as always.

"You've been king for over 20 years and yet, you still can't tie your tie properly." Her mother chastised.

"You signed up for this when you married me, Amanda."

"That was 30 years ago, I thought you would have learned to tie your tie by now," Her mom patted his chest and turned towards her children.

Peggy watched her parents for a few seconds, hoping that maybe one day she would have something like that. Michael smiled as he watched them.

"What are you two looking at? We have a ball to get to." Their mother said suddenly.

Peggy rolled her eyes, now hoping that she doesn't turn out like her mother.

Her father held out his arm for her mother and she took it. They walked past them and into the hall. Peggy and Michael followed them.

When they reached the doors that led to the ballroom, they stopped walking. Her mother adjusted her crown and so did her father. They both walked out first. Peggy walked out after they did and Michael followed suit.

The guests for the party were already there and the royal family was the last to join, which was typical. Her parents walked to their seats which were at the very front. Peggy and Michael sat with them in a sort of semicircle. As they walked through the room an applause broke out for the royal family.

Once the guests had calmed down, Her father stands with a flute of champagne in his hand.

"Thank you to each and every one of you for joining us tonight for our celebration. While I know that today is a celebration for my birthday, I want to celebrate the people of this country for being so supportive during this time. As you all know, my eldest son abdicated the crown. And because of this my daughter, Margaret, will now be the next in line to lead this country." He said this and lifted his flute up to the guests and they all clapped. They all drank their flutes of champagne just as he did.

Once he sat down the first course started to be served and the celebration was underway.

Once they had finished all five courses of the meal, Peggy was forced to go around with her parents and mingle with the guests that were attending.

"Margaret, this is Jack Thompson, he's the son of an American lawmaker." Her mother said, bringing her out of her thoughts.

Peggy put on a practiced smile and put her hand out, "Pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine." He said, taking her hand and kissing the back of it.

Peggy cringed inwardly, knowing that her parents were attempting to set her up. Peggy glared at her mother who was now talking to the lawmaker father of Jack Thompson.

"May I have this dance Princess?" Jack asked.

Peggy looked back at him, "Yes of course."

He took her hand and led her to the clearing where other guests were also dancing to the classical music being played.

Peggy did not want to dance with the American, but what choice did she really have? She was a princess, it was her job to dance with the suitors that her parents introduced to her. Even if she didn't like them, which was usually the case. Most of the suitors only wanted to be with her because she was part of the royal family which would automatically make them part of the royal family. Now that she was going to be queen, the only reason men wanted to be with her was that they may have a chance of becoming the king. When will she meet someone who wants to be with her because of who she is as a person?

Peggy placed her hand on his shoulder as he took her other hand and placed his other hand on her waist. They then began dancing. He pulled her in way too close.

"So Margaret, or can I call you Marge? Tell me about yourself."

"You may call me Margaret. And there's not much to tell." Peggy said, already getting annoyed.

She glanced at him, he had dark blonde hair that was combed over to one side. He also had nice eyes. He wore a dark blue suit that was well fitted. He was actually quite handsome, but his personality didn't seem to match his exterior.

"I mean I guess not. What do princess even do?" He said with a laugh.

"A lot actually. Not like you would know anything about it or me for that matter."

"Like what? Picking out tiaras and painting nails?"

Peggy scoffed, "I'm going to go look for another dance partner. The right partner."

She stepped out of his hold and walked away before he could stop her. She spotted Michael talking to Abby and thought about walking over and complaining about the terrible suitor her mother had made her meet, but something about the way that they were talking made Peggy change her mind. She turned back around and bumped into someone.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Peggy said. She looked up realized she had run into a reporter.

"Your Highness! My apologies! I um have a few questions for you." The young reporter said. She seemed around Peggy's age, which was rare.

"Oh no, it's completely fine. Really. It was my fault anyway. And yes, of course, anything." Peggy responded with a smile.

The woman smiled back anxiously. She pulled out a recording device and a notepad from her purse. The woman was dressed in a simple black dress that reached past her knees. She had paired the dress with a pair of black heels. Her blonde hair was half down and half up. She also had on a pearl necklace.

"I'm Violet, by the way, from BBC news. Um, I wanted to ask about your brother, Prince Michael, abdicating. Why did he abdicate?"

"It's a very simple reason, actually. Michael believes that I'm the rightful leader. I don't know where he got that idea from, but it was his decision to make." Peggy replied. She used the answer that her mother had provided for that question.

Violet asked a few more questions which she also answered using the guidelines that her mother had offered her. Thankfully, she didn't ask a single question about her love life. That made her like the reporter much more. They continued talking long after Violet had finished asking her questions. It was nice. Peggy hadn't built many bonds with other women because she simply didn't have the time, but now she realized what she was missing out on.

"You know, I was wondering. You're not British, but you're a reporter for BBC News. How did that happen?" Peggy asked as she grabbed two glasses wine off of a tray that a server was holding. She handed one glass to Violet.

"Well I went to college in the United States, but when I graduated I wanted to live somewhere that I never had. So I came here. Also, I was top of my class, and BBC News wanted me on their team, so here I am."

"That's amazing. Well, you are a good reporter. Asked about the important things."

"Thank you. That means a lot to me." She smiled.

"Of course, brilliance must be acknowledged." She replied with a smile. She held her glass out and Violet clinked her glass against hers.


End file.
